Review of Terms of Service

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V_P
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Latest Review: Terms of Service by Craig W. Stanfill

Review of Terms of Service

Post by V_P »

[Following is a volunteer review of "Terms of Service" by Craig W. Stanfill.]
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5 out of 5 stars
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Terms of Service by Craig W. Stanfill is a work of science fiction set in a future Artificial Intelligence Surveillance State. The story is about Kim. When Kim was four, she got separated from her mother. The state mentor was going to take care of Kim. Children getting separated from their parents was one of the policies applied to society by the state. The assigned mentor was responsible for taking care of these children.

Kim studied hard. She was a bright student. At school, she earned a scholarship that led her to one of the best universities. She got certified as an AI trainer and worked in The Artificial Intelligence Company for five years. Her work was to train automata. These are simple devices that cannot think for themselves. Everything in her life had conditions applied, from the food that she ate to the clothes she wore. Every single thing was under surveillance. She strictly followed the rules even when she was not interested since she wanted to be on the good books of the higher authority AI.

Sometimes things backfire. The same thing happens with Kim. On the return of her best friend Shan from school, everything changes. They used to ride bikes and were called beasts. Shan and Kim decided to go for bike rides like the times in school. Both of them picked up bikes for themselves from the park and started the journey. They competed with each other and reached a park boundary. The boundary was to proceed at their own risk. They crossed the border and violated many terms of service. Kim received a list of violations and penalties. She then learns about her past, her trauma because of which she had sleepless nights, the void in her life that was all because of this AI, and how these devices were used to oppress humanity.

The book is slow at the start. After reading a few chapters, it starts to gain attention. The characters, their emotions, the housebots, the stubborn refrigerator, everything is well written. The characters are well-built, and their emotions are portrayed beautifully. The language is simple and meets all the editorial standards. The only problem I felt was I am from a medical background, and the book is about technology. I had to go slow and invest a lot of time in this book because I did not have the basic knowledge of AI technology.

I would rate the book 5 out of 5 stars. The audience that has basic knowledge of technology will love the book. Also, some descriptions of erotic scenes and a bit of violence are included in the story. People who find this kind of content can skip the book. I feel it is worth a read. The author has done a great job writing the book.

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Terms of Service
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